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Fall convocation heralds1999-2000 school year  by Cindy A. Abole Public Relations   Determined to allow the faculty to meet a distinguished public health figure, MUSC has reinvited last year's keynote speaker to the university's annual fall faculty convocation, Aug. 25.    William L. Roper, M.D., former director of the federal Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and Prevention in Atlanta, was invited to speak at last year's convocation. The convocation was canceled by a hurricane named Bonnie.   “Dr. Roper was incredibly effective as the director of the CDC,” said Ray Greenberg, M.D., Ph.D., vice president for academic affairs and provost. “He brought a real-world understanding not only of public health, but also of political decision-making.”   Roper was named dean of University of North Carolina—Chapel Hill's School of Public Health in July 1997. He is celebrated for guiding international health and the total well-being of the worldwide population. At UNC, he heads a program that is continually ranked as one of the nation's top public health schools.   The school is recognized for its focus on family health, workplace and environmental safety, chronic illness and infectious disease and health care reform.   Originally from Birmingham, Ala., Roper earned his medical and public health degrees from the University of Alabama at Birmingham. He also worked as the state's assistant health director and as health director of Jefferson County, Ala.   Before his appointment to North Carolina, he was president of the Prudential Center for Health Care Research, a New Jersey-based national healthcare management company. Roper is immediate past president of the Association for Health Services Research and is chairman of the Partnership for Prevention. He is a member of the Institute of Medicine of the National Academy of Sciences.   Following Roper's address, the chairman of the MUSC Board of Trustees, Tommy Rowland, M.D., and Faculty Convocation Committee chairman Greenberg will present the Health Sciences Foundation's Distinguished Faculty Service, Teaching Excellence and Developing Scholars awards.   Recipients of this year's Distinguished Faculty Service Awards are: Isabel Lockard, Ph.D., professor emeritus of Cell Biology and Anatomy, College of Medicine; Julian E. McGill, Ph.D., professor emeritus of pharmaceutical sciences, College of Pharmacy; and Phanor L. Perot Jr., M.D., Ph.D., professor of neurological surgery, College of Medicine.     Recognition for this year's Teaching Excellence Awards goes to: Diana J. Vincent, Ph.D., Educator-Mentor, associate professor of radiology, College of Medicine; Lisa K. Saladin, M.Sc., Educator-Lecturer, associate professor of rehabilitation sciences, College of Health Professions; and Donna D. Johnson, M.D., Developing Teacher, assistant professor of obstetrics and gynecology, College of Medicine.   At the conclusion of the event, a reception will be held to honor award recipients and guests as a start to celebrate the new academic year.    Greenberg encourages the university to attend this event and experience the ongoing sense of community generated by MUSC faculty and their accomplishments.